September 2016

Blue Heron Chapter of the Sumi-e Society of America

Blue Heron News

September 18th Meeting at the Pretlow: Making a Collage Come have fun! Learn what to do with old paintings you have never framed and scraps of rice paper. Rose Burroughs will demonstrate how to weave these “leftovers” into an interesting and beautiful collage suitable for framing. No mounting will be necessary. Watch Rose create a masterpiece that honors sumi-e and its characteristic white space. You will leave the meeting thinking about what size frame and what pieces of artwork you will choose to make your own collage. Creativity and imagination

by Sharon Weinstein Sumi-e When I don't paint negative spaces appear in me

Dues! Dues! Dues! Dues for the Blue Heron Chapter are due at the September meeting. The $20.00 dues will cover the period from September, 2016, through August, 2017.  Checks should be made out to the Blue Heron Chapter. If you will not be at the meeting, you may mail the dues to:    Lynette Corley 420 Wolf's Neck Trail Virginia Beach, VA 23452

Summer Painting Parties

Club Officers 2016-2017 President: Jill Valentine Vice President: Mary Ann Matika Secretary: Betty Oliver Treasurer: Lynette Corley Blue Heron News is published nine times a year by the Blue Heron Chapter of the Sumi-e Society of America, Norfolk, Virginia. President/Publisher: Jill Valentine Editor: Ann McCarthy

President’s PageJil

l Val

entin

e Greetings Blue Heron members. A new sumi-e year is upon us.

Gird up your loins and stand strong and ready to paint, teach, demonstrate, mat, frame, tote, admire and inspire, encourage, organize, attend meetings, and write for the newsletter, if that is your forte. There's something everyone can contribute in one way or another.

I'm happy to be your facilitator for the next two years.

As we have no volunteer for the Hospitality Committee Chair, it was decided at the Board meeting that we will take turns (two or three of us each month) to bring refreshments to meetings, set up the table, and greet people as they come in the door. There will be a signup sheet at September's meeting. The hosts for September are Mary Ann Matika and Betty Oliver.

If you would like to bring a food item to share, that would be fine, but there is no need for everyone to bring food. We will try to keep the refreshments simple except for special occasions, such as the December meeting and the May tea. This way, the setup and cleanup will not be quite so time consuming.

The program for our first meeting of the year will be a demonstration of collage by Rose Burroughs. We will have the program first, a break for refreshments, and the business meeting to follow.

This has been a busy summer for our Chapter with several exhibitions and painting parties. Some members have been busy teaching. Our founding member, Doris Weber, always believed in teaching others what we have learned. By demonstrating sumi-e at the Moon Festival at Town Point Park in Norfolk on September 10th, we will be following that tradition. The Festival is from noon to 4 p.m. We can take turns demonstrating, or just be there in support of each other's efforts.

Enough, already........hoping to see you soon. Jill Valentine

September 2016

Meeting MinutesBetty O

liver, Secretary

September 2016

May 15, 2016, Pretlow Library

Co-Presidents Cathy Peyton and Joan Grosch called the meeting to order at 2:00 p.m. The April minutes were approved as written. Thirty-two members and guests were present. The treasurer, Lynette Corley, reported a balance on hand of $3,610.41. Committee Reports: External Exhibits: Gail Goodman Gail provided an update on the Henry Li workshop. Lynette Corley will set up Henry Li’s DVDs for check-out at monthly meetings. Sumi-e paper was purchased and will be available for purchase by members at Blue Heron meetings. Newsletter: Please send articles to both John and Ann McCarthy throughout the summer months. Old Business: There was no old business to report. New Business: The Nominating Committee announced the slate of officers for the 2016-18 biennium.

•President: Jill Valentine

•Vice President: Mary Ann Matika

•Secretary: Betty Oliver •Treasurer: Lynette Corley

Members voted and approved the nominees unanimously. Announcements: Gallery 21’s reception is Thursday, May 19th, 5:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. The annual luncheon is Sunday, June 5th, at 12:30 p.m. at Geisha Japanese Steakhouse. Jerry’s Artarama Store is moving across from Loehmann’s Plaza on Virginia Beach Blvd. The meeting was adjourned at 2:30 p.m. Members enjoyed high tea refreshments while selecting paintings for the 2017 calendar. Barbara Battelle demonstrated “These are a Few of My favorite Sumi-e Things (with Attention to Composition).” Members learned many painting techniques from Barbara’s beautiful paintings and through her many examples.

Respectfully, submitted, Betty Oliver for Mary Ann Matika, Secretary

August 19, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. Board members: President: Jill Valentine, Vice President: Mary Ann Matika, Secretary: Betty Oliver, Treasurer: Lynette Corley, and Committee Chairmen Cathy Peyton, Jill Brunner, Gail Goodman, Ann McCarthy, and Norene Spencer were present.

Mary Ann Matika presented a tentative program schedule for 2016-2017 (see the last page of newsletter). Membership: Lynette Corley It was suggested to have name tags for everyone. Historian: Peggy Carr did a beautiful job on our scrapbook. It includes all newsletters, special events, and will include our sumi-e calendar. Newsletter: Ann McCarthy gave the newsletter report. The last day of the month is the deadline for articles. Bravo to Ann and her husband for a superb newsletter! Exhibitions: Jill Brunner. September 10, 2016: Moon Festival (Celebration of Harvest) Chinese activities, tent, Sumi-e paintings. December: Sumi-e exhibit at the Meyera Oberndorf Central Library in Virginia Beach. Publicity: Jill Brunner shared sumi-e brochures and business cards. Nancy Milner will contact Virginian- Pilot with publicity for Beacon, etc. Since there is no committee chairman for Hospitality: There will be a signup list for two to three members to bring refreshments to a meeting, greet members and visitors, and make sure they have a name tag. Cathy Peyton and Joan Grosch will co-chair the Calendar Committee. Cathy Peyton motioned for each member to submit only one picture for the calendar. It was seconded and passed.

It was discussed to have painting parties during the year focusing on paintings for the calendar. Norene Spencer presented information about the Website. Norene needed an assistant, and Gail Goodman volunteered to help. *The membership application is on the website. *Every member has one page on the website to use as a gallery. Ann McCarthy presented information about Facebook. New postings include Henry Li’s Workshop and YouTube Sumi-e Presentations. Gail Goodman presented ideas for External Workshops: Frederica Marshall (Zen Horsetail Brush, Textures, etc.) was suggested. Gail will continue to look for possibilities for workshops, including Sunsook Setton and Virginia Lloyd Davies. Ravae Oleson is the chairman of Internal Workshops. RaVae has put the cookbook on hold. Norene Spencer presented The National Society update: *The Quarterly Magazine was shared. * It was stated that all Officers and Committee Chairmen are required to be members of the Sumi-e Society of America, Inc. *International Exhibit Information on the Modern Ink Paintings from Taiwan, Japan, and the U.S. Exhibition. New Business: The Budget was presented by Lynette Corley. Board members submitted estimates of upcoming expenses. The meeting ended at 3:45pm. Respectfully submitted, Betty Oliver

Board Meeting Minutes

September 2016

LearnTo start off this painting season, I’ll try to answer the question I get most often in my classes (regardless of subject matter), namely, what paper should I use? The simple answer is, use the one that works best for your style of painting – easier said than done. Hopefully, this article will help you make that choice. Let’s first get a handle on the basic characteristics of what we refer to as “rice“paper. Rice paper can generally be grouped into two broad categories, raw and sized. It is called raw because it is untreated and can be used as soon as it is made. It is very absorbent. Sized paper, on the other hand, goes through a process including soaking of the paper in alum to reduce the paper’s absorbency. Raw paper: One of the most popular raw papers is shuen paper. It is quite absorbent and is capable of reflecting the maximum range of color variations. It is best suited to the spontaneous style of brushwork. It comes in various thicknesses and styles. It can be used for painting many subjects, including flowers, landscapes, and calligraphy. “Single shuen” (thinnest sheet) is very absorbent, and it is often difficult for beginners to control the amount of moisture. Moisture control is easier to control with “double shuen.” One style of two-sheet shuen is “Moon Palace” paper. Other absorbent papers include “mulberry paper” and “cotton paper.” There are many specialized shuen papers. Some are dyed with colors. Speckled gold papers have bits of gold paper mixed in the pulp when

the paper is made. There are also shuen papers with patterns of good wishes or luck printed on them. Sized paper: Reduced absorbency paper will allow for repeated application of colors and strokes and ease of doing color washes. It is used most effectively for landscapes, florals with shaded backgrounds, and fine line painting. Some of the more

popular sized papers are: ma, jen ho, and pi. By the way, OAS sells a sized shuen paper. Finding what’s best for you: The above discussion should get you started by first establishing the type of paper usually used for the subject matter you want to paint. Basically, it’s sized paper for detailed styles and raw paper for spontaneous styles. Next, we have to take your “technique” or “style” into account. For example, a raw shuen is often used for landscape painting: however, if you are working in the Ling-nan style, you’ll want to use a sized paper like ma or jen-ho. Thus, once you have settled on raw or sized, it’s a matter of trial and error to settle on the specific raw or sized paper that works best for you. I believe a better approach is to first find what painting style you are most interested in by studying works of the “Pros”/Masters (traditional or contemporary). Focus on the one(s) you’d like to emulate and determine what kind of paper they use. That should establish at least whether you are going to use raw or sized paper. It might even identify the specific one in that category. If not, experiment with different types in that category to find the ones that work best for you. Keep in mind that different manufacturers have different processes for the same type of paper – hence different handling characteristics. Also, as your skill and technique mature, it is not uncommon to find a need for a different paper to effectively deliver your message. Want more information? I recommend the books by Rebecca Yue, Chinese Flower Painting Made Easy and Chinese Landscapes Made Easy. Most of the information in this article came from her books. For a discussion on Japanese paper see Sumi-e -The Art of Japanese Ink Painting, by Shozo Sato. Good luck in finding your “magic” paper,

Joe

Joe

Nic

hola

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September 2016

Announcements

September 2016

When: Saturday, September 10, 2016 Time: Noon – 4p.m. Where: TowneBank Fountain Park at Town Point Park on the downtown Norfolk Waterfront. Norfolk’s Mid-Autumn Moon Festival commemorates one of the most celebrated Chinese holidays and is rich In Asian culture and tradition. Normally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month (which falls on September 10th this year) in observance of the bountiful autumn harvest, the event can also be held at various times during the Autumn season. The Chinese often compare the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival to the American Thanksgiving where families and friend come together to celebrate the bountiful harvest with a plentiful feast. I want to thank our new President, Jill Valentine, and Barbara Mason for volunteering to help me with our painting.

We will continue Blue Heron member group orders from OAS this year and also begin Blue Heron member group orders from Blue Heron Arts.  I would like to make the first order(s) after the October meeting.  The necessary order forms will be e-mailed to Blue Heron members before the September meeting, and I will also have copies of the forms at that meeting.  The maximum number of items that can be ordered per person will again be three. Lynette Corley, Treasurer

EXHIBITS This year, we have three exhibits scheduled. DECEMBER 1 – 31: Virginia Beach Central Library. This exhibit was planned by a gentleman by the name of Robert Kennedy who has become a volunteer exhibit co-ordinator for the library. JANUARY: Norfolk Botanical Garden FEBRUARY: Titustown Visual Arts Center I’ll send more information regarding each exhibit in the next newsletters. Jill Brunner Exhibits Chairperson

This month’s meeting: Rose Burroughs

“Making a Collage”

2 pm-4pm Pretlow Library

18next meeting

September

Blue Heron News 744 Yorkshire Dr. Virginia Beach, VA 23452

October 16, Pretlow Library: Norene Spencer, “How to Use the Chop in Sumi-e Paintings” November 20, Pretlow Library: Sandy Bone, “The Magic Brush Inspires My Painting” December 18, Pretlow Library: Holiday Card Exchange January 8, Pretlow Library: Betty Oliver, “My Children’s Book About Traveling the Seven Continents” and Joe Nicholas, “Calligraphy Practice Improves Brush Strokes” February: Titustown Show and Reception March 19, Charles Taylor Museum in Hampton: Lee Gerry Wertheimer Artist in Residence Tour April: TBA External workshop May 21, Pretlow Library: Tea Party and Calendar Selection